His Past
by kat69d
Summary: When the world went to hell, I never expected to find him again or having to tell him the truth...I know Daryl Dixon is a survivor but would he survive what I have to tell him?
1. Chapter 1

**Note: I've been sitting on this story for a while and even though it's not finished and I have to study this week, I wanted to post it...I've taken it in one direction already but depending on what you all think, it might go somewhere completely different...so let me know what you think...Enjoy!**

* * *

I was stalking through the minor clump of trees, careful of each step and sound I made. I had strapped my backpack down so it wouldn't jostle too much if I needed to run and my main weapon was at my side. In one hand, I held a KA-BAR Bowie knife and a KA-BAR Kukri machete. What can I say? My father was a fan of the company and loved their products.

One foot in front of the other, my boots barely made any sound. I could see some structure in front of me through the trees and I hoped I could get there, hide and rest for a bit. Having to hide from the walkers was tough, more so since I'm the last of my little group. I came to the edge of the trees and crouched down to scope out the area.

The structure I found was a prison with walkers pawing at the fences. I pulled a small pair of binoculars from a side pocket of my pants and used it to see inside the prison. I could see people walking around with weapons as they took out the walkers inside the courtyard.

"If they're taking the prison, I doubt I'll be able to stroll right in and ask for a breather," I muttered.

Stuffing the binoculars away, I picked up the machete and walked parallel to the prison but keeping just inside of the trees. I heard shuffling of feet behind me so I swung quick and hard. The head slopped off and landed on the grass. My knife imbedded itself in the next skull of the walker but as I pulled it out, I took a quick count. There were at least 15 walkers now approaching.

"Fuck it. You want me? Come and get me," I shouted.

I backed out of the trees and took out the walkers that were closest to me. I flipped the Bowie knife so I held the blade in my fingers for a brief moment before I threw it into another skull. I kept backing up and lobbed the machete.

"Come and get me you motherfuckers. If I had known I'd be hunting you when I was a kid, I would have done better."

Only way I would have gotten better was to go pro but the competitions I had won showed that I was great at what I knew. I lifted up my main weapon and took aim. The first bolt struck right through an eye socket and the one following took out another's forehead. I set the last bolt I had immediate access to and took aim. After I pulled the trigger, I would have to use the gun hanging under my arm.

"Y'all can go to hell!" I screamed as I set the bolt loose.

Letting the bow go so it would fall to my side because of the strap, I reached for my gun and slipped off the safety. I was nearing the end of the clip but I would take out as many as I could before I would have to go hand to hand.

"Need a hand?"

I didn't bother to even acknowledge the human who talked to me but focused on the staggering undead in front of me. More shots were let out than just my own and soon the small group of walkers were clear. Still ignoring those who helped me, I jogged to grab my knife, machete, and the bolts. I pulled them free from the skulls and wiped the brain matter on someone's shirt.

"Thanks for that," I said as I finally looked up.

There was a group of five, 4 men and 1 woman, who stood on the other side of the fence. Scanning each quickly, my eyes finally took in the last man on the edge. The way he stood and held the butt of his bow against his hip was familiar.

"How's it going, Dix?" I smirked as I holstered my gun.


	2. Chapter 2

**Note: I've been sitting on this story for a while and even though it's not finished and I have to study this week, I wanted to post it...I've taken it in one direction already but depending on what you all think, it might go somewhere completely different...so let me know what you think...Enjoy! (p.s. I'm not good at writing an accent like Daryl's so there isn't much of that, plus it's a bit easier to read when it's not all redneck-y...)**

**Note2: Dedicated to chasezx3 since it explains what she wanted to know...**

* * *

The others were quick to stare at the man while he stepped closer.

"Do I know ya?" he asked.

"It's been about 10years but the last time I saw you was the night before I moved and you gave me the most thorough fucking in the back of your truck. Remember now, Dix?"

"Ya were the only one I'd let to call me Dix. I would beat down anyone else who tried," he said as he stepped closer, dropping his Horton to his side.

"Daryl," a man with the air of being leader said.

"Rick, meet Anna Jane."

"It's just AJ," I interrupted. "I'm glad to see you're alright, Dix, but I should find somewhere to rest up."

I smiled at him and turned to walk away.

"Wait. You can rest here but on the condition you hand over your weapons. At least until we can learn to trust you," Rick said.

"I'll give you everything except for one small knife. It's never left my possession since I got it."

Rick holstered his Python and stepped closer to the fence. I unslung my bow and laid it carefully on the ground. Beside it I left my Bowie and machete. I dug out several other knives from my waistband or pockets. I unstrapped another Bowie from my ankle and went about removing my backpack. That too I left with my cache of weapons. The last weapon I removed was the Smith and Wesson which remained in its holster. I lowered the leather and stepped back.

"That's all except for my one knife."

"What's in the backpack that you needed to remove it?" a young Asian asked from Dix's right.

"More weapons, ammo, C4, flash-bangs, other explosives and a couple protein bars."

"Damn, girl. Did ya raid an armoury?" Dix asked.

"My group did and this is what's left."

They unwound the wire that had been holding the fence closed and Dix was the first through. He eyed the weapons but approached me. I could feel his eyes as he checked me over and I did the same. It hadn't looked like he had changed much. He seemed stronger but also constantly on edge.

"Ya bleeding," he said, pointing at my left side.

"One of my group tried to take some walkers out as he was being eaten and a bullet caught me instead," I replied, grabbing my side to stem the bleeding.

"How long ago?" the woman asked as I watched the others collect my things.

"A week. I haven't been able to find a safe place to hole up to dig the fucking bullet out. Last two nights, I've slept up in the trees but I didn't need to worry about falling out of the tree if I passed out after I get it out."

"Come on. The others are probably wondering what's going on."

As cautious as they were, I knew I needed to be out front. Dix was walking beside me with the others behind us. My hand kept slipping from my side since it was coated in blood. I had been able to stop the bleeding after I got away and the past week had been easy in relation to the walkers but the small attack must have torn open the wound. My sight was narrowing and darkening. I staggered and grabbed onto the fence. I heard a couple of guns being cocked.

"AJ! Anna Jane, ya stay awake, ya fuckin' bitch."

"I always thought I'd die by walker, not a fucking bullet. Was the best night of my life, Dix. Sorry about..," I sighed as my body gave up.

(* * *)

My eyes opened to the bottom of a bunk and not the pure white room I expected from being dead. I blinked a few times but still saw the bottom of the bunk.

"Must be in Hell."

"Not Hell, just prison."

I slowly turned my head and spotted Dix leaning against the wall, his arms crossed over his chest. My eyes raked over his body, focusing on the small patch of skin that showed between the bottom of his shirt and the top of his pants.

"If my side didn't fucking hurt so much, I'd let you pin me against that wall and have your wicked way with me," I smirked.

"Still the same AJ."

"Of course. Not like you ever complained, that is until I had to move," I replied.

He pushed off of the wall and knelt down beside the bed.

"Why would I ever complain with what ya could do with your tongue?"

Dix crashed his lips onto mine and I wrapped my arms around his neck. My tongue darted out and pushed its way into his mouth. Now wasn't the time to be innocent and slow. As soon as I was healed enough, I knew Dix would have me up against the wall with my legs wrapped around his waist, teasing me to the brink of ecstasy and then denying me. He used to do it all the time before finally taking me and making me submit to the rough, hard thrusts.

Someone cleared their throat and we broke apart. An older man with white hair and beard stared down at us from the cell door. He had an amused look on his face.

"Heard talking so I thought I'd check on her."

"Dix thought I might need some mouth to mouth. You know because I couldn't breathe because of how hot he is."

The man chuckled and it drew the attention of others. Dix backed up slowly and I reached up to the edge of the bunk above me.

"What do you think you're doing?"

"I'm getting up. What does it look like I'm doing? Tap dancing?"

"You've been out for three days. You shouldn't move much in case you reopen that wound," the man said.

"Look, Pops. I haven't wet the bed since I was 2 and I'm not going to start now," I said, pulling myself up.

Dix was quick to help me into a sitting position. I moved my legs to the floor and with one arm across my stomach to hold onto the wound, I stood. My legs did shake but Dix was there in case I fell.

"Let me pee and then you can check the wound. I'm sure whatever you did should be good enough."

Dix escorted me to a cell at the end of the block which they had converted into toilets. Since the actual toilets wouldn't refill with water, they had removed the porcelain and placed a bucket with a hole in the bottom over the whole.

"Ah, the joys of an indoor outhouse," I mused.

There was even a basin of water and a sliver of soap to wash your hands. Dix helped me back and rather go lie down, he helped me over to the stairs. I sat on one and leaned back until I felt comfortable. Sitting upright pulled on the wound.

"Did you have to stitch it, Pops?"

"It's Hershel and yes, I did. You were lucky that the bullet missed anything vital and hadn't broken up."

"When I was shot, the bullet broke into pieces and Hershel had to find them all. One piece was really close to my heart," a boy offered as he stepped closer to look at the wound.

"Maybe we should start a 'Being Shot but Survived' club. Does anyone else qualify? If not, I think you can be President."

"My dad was shot before this all started," he said, pointing at Rick.

"Still think you're President material though, kid. So do I keep coming up with names for all of you or are you going to tell me your names?"

Introductions were quick and in that time, I could pick out the hierarchy of the group. Rick was boss with Dix, Glenn, and T-Dog his muscle. While everyone could defend themselves, those four were the group's protectors. Lori would have held the same place as Maggie, Carol and Carl if she wasn't as pregnant as she was. Hershel could hold his own but his age would slow him down. Beth seemed hesitant but would defend herself if needed.

"Have you cleared out the entire prison or just this section?"

"We've done outside and this cell block. We're going to do a sweep of the rest of the prison tomorrow. We might find food or more weapons."

"What about other people? Prison staff or prisoners? What you gonna do with them?"

"Why so curious? Know someone here you can team up with and try to take our group out?" Rick asked.

"Why the fuck would I try to take the group out? You helped me with those walkers and my wound. I get that you don't trust me even if Dix knows me. I'm just trying to point out that there may be others here and see if you're willing to kill them before they can stab you in the back. I'd never do that."

"You say that now. Maybe to get us to trust you and then once you get your weapons back, wham! You betray us."

"Jesus Fucking Christ. Someone's really done a number on you. You were the one to invite me in but I'm not sticking around if you can't even let me ask a few questions. Sun's gone down but at first light, I'm leaving."

I heaved myself up and pushed through the group to leave. Rick grabbed my arm and spun me around to face him.

"You seem to already trust us. Why is that?"

"Because Dix hasn't killed you yet. When I knew him, he didn't trust a lot of people except for his brother. You must have done something to earn that trust and respect from him. If he trusts you, so do I."

"Why do you put so much into what Daryl thinks?" T-Dog asked.

I looked over to Dix as I pulled my arm free of Rick's grip.

"That's personal and doesn't play into what's happening now. I'm going to rest and come morning, I'm gone. I thank you for all that you've done but I'm not putting up with this shit any longer."

I stormed over to the cell I had been in earlier and laid down. Since I couldn't lie on my side, I turned my head away from the door and stared at the wall. I clenched and loosened my hands several times trying to calm down. A shadow fell over me before I heard his voice.

"Why do ya trust me so much, AJ?"

"Even though I'm 7years younger than you, you allowed me to play with you. You and Merle, to some extent, didn't brush me off and tell me to go play with Barbies."

"Ya were the only girl who could keep up with us in the woods. Ya old man raised you like we were raised when Pops wasn't drunk. The fact ya were a girl didn't matter until ya were older."

"You mean when I grew tits. You were my friend, my lover, the man I loved, still love actually. I trust you inexplicitly because of that and what you gave me. If you trust and respect these people, then so do I even if Rick's being an asshole."

"It's been 10years, AJ. I'm not the same guy I was back then."

"And I'm not the same AJ. I had to grow up in those 10years but there was never a day that I didn't think about you. I wrote you letters at first but never got anything back. I flew back on my 18th birthday to see you but you had left town. I never forgot about you," I explained as I sat up.

Dix sat down on the bed beside me and looked into my blue eyes.

"Why? I am just some fuckin' redneck who ya played with and then fucked around with. What's so special about me?"

"Because you were the only one and you gave me something to cherish," I whispered so my voice wouldn't crack in anguish.

"What do ya mean, AJ?"

I ran my hand through my brown hair only to get tangled. I stood and stared to pace the small cell as I pulled my fingers free. He was going to hate me once he found out but did deserve to know. I still couldn't find the right words when I felt Dix's hands on my shoulders, pushing me against the wall.

"What the fuck do ya mean, AJ?" he partially yelled at my face.

"You gave me my son! I still love you because every day I would look into his eyes and remember you and everything we did together. All I had to do was look at him and it warmed me to the core. Moving away from you was the second hardest thing I've ever done but when I learned I had some piece of you growing inside me, I knew I would be alright. My life has always been about you, Daryl Dixon, and then our son."


	3. Chapter 3

**Note: I've been sitting on this story for a while and even though it's not finished and I have to study this week, I wanted to post it...I've taken it in one direction already but depending on what you all think, it might go somewhere completely different...so let me know what you think...Enjoy! (p.s. I'm not good at writing an accent like Daryl's so there isn't much of that, plus it's a bit easier to read when it's not all redneck-y...)**

* * *

Neither of us cared that we had a crowd watching us. His hands let go of my shoulders and cupped my cheeks.

"We have a son?" he asked.

"He was the smartest boy I knew. He took to everything he was taught right away. Always trying to learn more or get hands on experience. He loved the woods and camping. He caught his first rabbit when he was 4. He would have…" I explained as tears fell down my cheeks.

"AJ, what happened to him? Did a walker get him?"

"It was just a scratch and when this all started, they only said not to get bitten. He wasn't bite, I swear, but he started to burn up. I couldn't get his temperature down and nothing was helping with the pain. He told me he loved me before he died. I couldn't move. I had just watched our son die. I couldn't let him hurt anyone else. Oh, Dix, I told him I loved him as I killed him. I killed our son," I sobbed.

My body crumpled to the floor and I cried. My body hurt not just from the wound but also from the wracking sobs as my heart broke again. I curled up on my side, bringing my legs as close to my chest as I could. Dix was still standing over me for a few moments before he sat down beside me. He gathered me into his arms and held me.

"I'm so sorry, Dix. I should have been watching him better. I shouldn't have allowed it to happen but he wanted to come with me as I looked for food. I got the walker before it could bite him but his arm was scratched. I let my little boy get hurt and then I had to kill him. I'm so sorry. I'm so sorry."

The group dispersed as Dix held me. One hand held my face close to his chest and his other arm was wrapped around my stomach, carefully because of my wound. It must have taken me nearly 10minutes to calm down. Tears still flowed down my cheeks but I wasn't sobbing or hyperventilating. I curled more into Dix and grabbed onto his shirt.

"He looked so much like you and always wanted to hear stories of his Daddy. Every night before bed, I'd share a memory of you with him. Sometimes it was something small but sometimes it was something big, like that time you and Merle hunted down a stag when you were 13.

"For his 8th birthday, I gifted him with the exact same knife you gave me on my 8th birthday. That's the knife I wouldn't give up. I've never let anyone else touch it except for our son. He wanted to hear all about how you gave it to me and then took me hunting."

"AJ, what was his name?" Dix asked, raising my chin with one of his fingers.

"Travis. Travis Nicholas Dixon," I said as I reached for something hanging down my shirt.

I unwedged the locket from between my breasts and pulled it out. I opened it to show Dix the picture. While I had others in my backpack, this was the closest one. On one side of the locket was a picture of Dix that I had taken before I moved and on the other side was Travis on his 9th birthday, three weeks before I had to kill him.

"He's perfect, AJ."

"I wanted you in our life. I brought him when I went back but no one knew where you had gone off to. Merle was in jail again for beating someone up in a bar and I wasn't going to take a baby to the prison. I had even thought about moving back in case you would return some day but then Dad got sick and I couldn't leave."

"Sorry I wasn't there for ya. But ya said ya wrote. I got no mail."

"Then they're lost in postal land somewhere because they never came back 'Return to Sender'. Dix, I'm so sorry that you couldn't meet your son. I have more pictures and I'll tell you everything you want about him."

I felt Dix nod his head before he helped me up. He told me to rest and with a quick kiss on the forehead, he left the cell. I caught a glimpse of Carol stopping him to talk. She placed a hand on his arm and I knew that life definitely wasn't the same any longer.

As the sun rose the next morning, I was already up and prepared to go. The only downside of being a person who learned to rise early for hunting was that no one else was up. My things were in Rick's cell and I knew he wouldn't hesitate to shoot me if I tried to get them. I passed a bit of time using the pull up bar that was in the cell. Since my weight was being supported by my arms, my side wasn't hurting and as long as I didn't try to incorporate a crunch it wouldn't be so bad.

"Knew ya'd be up. Didn't expect ya to be doing that, like a harden criminal," Dix joked.

"What can I say? I'm no one's bitch, let alone those walkers out there. Even with all the running and such, I've made sure to stay fit."

"That ya have," he leered as he checked out my body.

"Enough, Dix. Like you said, things have changed but I'd never let you cheat on Carol with me. Besides I'm leaving this morning."

"Not until after you pay us back for helping you with helping us clear the prison," Rick interrupted as he stepped towards the cell.

"Of course. How selfish of me to use an unoccupied cell and some of your precious thread without offering to help clear a place that I'm not staying."

"It would probably be easier if I put a bullet in your head now," he growled, his hand inching to his gun.

"Normally I'd suggest you get laid but if anything like that happens, that kid's going to be born right quick."

Rick shared a look with Dix and left the cell.

"How'd you know about Rick and Lori?"

"Doesn't take a genius to see there's an issue between them. Plus I heard them talking last night."

"So ya know, me and Carol are nothing."

The group shared a small breakfast before those going armed up. I shared some of my weapons with the others, even left a few behind for Lori, Carol, Maggie, Beth, and Carl to keep. Dix was out front and he slipped his arm through to put the key in the lock. I was in the middle with Glenn and Hershel while Rick and T-Dog were behind us. Maggie had offered to come but Rick wanted someone extra to stay behind.

"I'm watching you," Rick said before we left the cell block.

"I'd charge you with stalking if there was such a thing as police anymore," I smirked back at him.

As we moved our way down the hallways, Glenn marked the walls with arrows pointing back the way we came. I understood the logic in case we got lost but my focus was more on what was up ahead. I slowly inched my way up to the front to Dix and at one junction, he looked left while I looked right.

"Clear on this side," I whispered.

"Same here."

"Go left. We can always double back later," Rick ordered.

We did run into walkers eventually. They were old residents of the prison or in some cases, people who looked like they had worked here. We took them out quickly and mostly quietly. The group had hit the end of the hallway which led outside. Doubling back we went down the hallway I had cleared and heard noises from one of the rooms. Since I was closest, I grabbed the handle and waited while they got into position.

I pulled the door open and the few walkers who were standing there were killed. The room held nothing significant so we continued on. Hershel stumbled over a walker and made a large ruckus as his axe scrapped against the wall. It drew the attention of a large group of walkers.

"Keep tight."

Survival kicked in for me and I took down any walker who got close. Two attacked at the same time and while it was a struggle because of the close quarters, I managed to get my Bowie into their heads. I tried to keep the group in my sights but as more walkers came from behind us somehow, we had to battle them on both sides.

"Fuck! Glenn, Daryl, get Hershel. T, get the door."

I killed the last walker on my side and turned to find T-Dog hacking at a locked chain on a door. Glenn and Daryl were supporting Hershel as he bled from a bite on his leg. I provided cover as the chain gave way and they hurried into the room after opening the door. I stabbed another walker before following the others through the door. T-Dog and I found a few things to block the door as Rick collapsed at Hershel's side.

"Damn it. I'm sorry, Hershel."

Dix was taking off his belt to tie around Hershel's leg when there was a large bang at the door. He immediately raised his Horton at the door. I dropped my weapons and pulled his belt through the buckle. I knelt at Rick's side and secured the belt around the leg.

"You'll need it to stem the blood flow," I said as I pulled off my shirt and handed it over to the leader.

I held the belt tight in my hand and leaned on Hershel's shoulder to hold him down. Rick gave me a look and I nodded back. Rick raised the axe that Hershel had been carrying and brought it down on the leg just below the knee. It took a few whacks before the bitten limb was free. Hershel had screamed throughout the amputation but had now gone quiet. Rick had pulled off the checkered shirt he was wearing over a T-shirt and pressed it into the wound as well as my own top. The more layers and pressure we could do would be beneficial. We would need to cauterize the wound to stop the bleeding soon though. I caught something out of the corner of my mind.

"Dix. Rick."

I tilted my head to the right and watched as everyone turned. There standing behind a barred partition were a handful of people dressed in prison jumpsuits and holding weapons. T-Dog, Rick, and Dix were quick to line up in front of us. I grabbed onto the bloody stump to apply pressure since Rick had let go.

"Damn, man. You just hacked off his leg," one of the prisoners announced.


	4. Chapter 4

**Note: Studying is finished so now I get to spend more time writing...I've had a shitty day so you get 2 chapters...Enjoy! (p.s. I'm not good at writing an accent like Daryl's so there isn't much of that, plus it's a bit easier to read when it's not all redneck-y...)**

* * *

"No shit, Sherlock," I retorted as Glenn hurried over to see if there was anything we could use on Hershel.

"AJ," Dix warned.

"Whatever. We need to get him back where we can finish this up. The lighter in my pocket isn't big enough to heat up a blade to cauterize the wound. I have a small hand held blow torch in my backpack."

I reapplied the shirts and used the sleeves on Rick's shirt to tie it around his knee in place. Since the belt was wrapped and secure, I tucked the end in under the double wrap of the belt. It should hold until we got back.

"T-Dog, help Glenn with Hershel. Daryl, AJ take point and I'll bring up the rear."

I stood up to grab my Bowie and machete, glad that I left my bow back at the cell block. Hershel was quickly lifted from the bloody ground. Dix moved over and helped me move the things from the door. I raised my machete and was ready to attack once the door was open.

"Wait. We want to help. We can help clear the way. The five of us have been stuck here for months," one guy with long straggly reddish hair said.

Rick shared a look with Dix and agreed. The prisoners came out and took up positions. While standing around a group of guys in my bra would normally have not been a big deal, the fact most of these men had been locked up and sex deprived was kinda creeping me out. Dix shifted so he was closer to me and that one of the prisoners would be the one to open the door.

"Go and aim for the head."

The door opened and we rushed through. It didn't take much time to clear the hallway immediately in front of us. One of the inmates went completely off the handle and was beating the walker but not killing it. I rolled my eyes and slammed my machete down into its head. He glared at me with a twisted smile before moving on. We hurried to our cell block following the arrows on the wall. Dix unlocked the door to the large open area and with Rick's command, T-Dog and Glenn hurried through with Hershel. Carl was quick and opened the door to the cell block with the set of keys that he had.

"Oh, Daddy," Maggie cried as she saw Hershel.

Now that Hershel was safe, Rick, Dix and I turned to face the prisoners.

"You can stay in here tonight and we'll clear another cell block for you tomorrow."

"Come on, man. I was housed in that cell block for nearly 6years. You ain't keeping me from my own bed," one prisoner said stepping closer to the entrance of the cell block.

Since I was near, I swiftly brought my machete up to his neck.

"Make any kind of move towards that door and I will slice through your neck. You've gotten a free show from me with not having a shirt on but that I don't care about. You will stay in here until we clear a cell block or you can die. I don't give a fuck. It's your choice," I threatened.

The man stepped back and I lowered my weapon. I walked passed him and nearly cleared the group of inmates when I found one standing in my way. It was the man who smiled at me. Dix was quick to raise his bow but all the man did was leer. He moved to the side and as I walked away, I felt his hand on my ass.

"I wouldn't sleep if I were you," he said.

I swung and brought my machete down onto his neck. The bolt that slammed into his head was also a nice touch.

"Would anyone else like to threaten me or my group because like I said, I don't give a fuck about what happens to you?"

The rest of the inmates backed up and the three of us went into the cell block. Carl locked the door while Rick hurried to Hershel's side. Dix followed me to my cell and I dug out another shirt from my backpack. Absentmindedly, I rubbed at my side as I tried to look for the hand torch.

"AJ."

"I'm fine, Dix. He's not the first I've killed."

"Maybe not but he was human."

"His humanity left a long time ago," I replied as I walked past him with the torch.

Between Lori and Carol, Hershel was in good hands. I checked on the inmates through the door and then paced to the end of the cell block. Rather than heading back, I took the stairs and paced up top. The cells that the others were sleeping in were becoming homey and didn't seem so bleak. After my fifth or sixth lap in front of the cells, I dropped down and hung my legs over the edge. I leaned up and rested my arms on the lower bar of the railing swinging my legs back and forth.

"AJ, are you alright?" T-Dog asked.

"Yeah, yeah, yeah. I'm just in the need of something to do. I can't just stand around and not do something. When I was with my group, we were constantly moving. The only time we didn't was during the winter and we had holed ourselves up in this large mansion. It had been ransacked and shit but it gave us shelter and actual beds to sleep in for once. I kept busy there by running around the house or mock-fighting with the guys."

"Have you always been like this?"

"Doctors diagnosed me with small case of ADHD when I was in grade school. Unfortunately I've been without meds for months. I still check every pharmacy in case there's something but most often the meds were swiped for a quick fix. Is there another way out of the cell block than going by the inmates?"

"There's a back way that goes down a hallway before it leads outside."

"Awesome. I'm going to go outside and do something. Can you let me out please?" I asked, hopping up and bouncing on my toes.

T-Dog got the keys and came with me. We made sure we had weapons just in case we found some walkers. The sun hit my face and I was thrilled. I spread my arms and twirled for a few minutes before jogging around a bit. The entire time, the muscular black man watched me.

"You should do something with the bodies. If we dragged them down to a corner somewhere and burn them, they'd be out of your way. Tidy the entire area so when you come out here, you won't immediately think of the undead and surviving. It'll be like going to a park when you were a kid because of the open space and the picnic tables. Oooo, a picnic sounds great. I wonder if those inmates had access to food. Of course, they'd need food because they survived. You should split up what's left. I won't take much when I leave. I'll make sure that Hershel is alright before I go though. He's an old tough son of a bitch."

"Ya rambling, AJ."

I turned around and saw Dix leaning against the door frame.

"It'll stop by tonight or tomorrow morning at the latest. These pouts of hyperactivity don't usually last long but the last time I was off meds was with Travis. I wasn't going to take the risk of the meds hurting him so my doctor said I could come off of them but if things got bad, then I would have to go back on them.

"So do you think we should burn them? Dig a pit, toss them inside, and fwoosh, light the fuckers up? I'm sure they have shovels somewhere in the prison. We could find a spot near the fence to antagonize the other walkers and let them watch the pile burn. Probably shouldn't do it in that small field because it looks to be good planting soil. Maybe if you do a run into the nearest town or something, you might find some seeds that you could plant. Hmm, I'm going to run through and see if there are any places that we need to close up or something."

I caught the look that T-Dog gave Dix but chose to ignore it. I weaved through the courtyard and other open areas. I hit a few snags where the gates were closed but I peered through the fence and tried to spot any areas that needed to be closed. There was an area that looked as if the building blew up but it couldn't be accessed from the outside. We'd have to check it out by going through the building. Taking my time to work my way back, I thought about what had happened the last couple of days. I was thinking of Dix when something stumbled out of an open door.

"Awesome. Come here. Come on. That's a good walker," I chanted as he staggered over.

I swung out with my foot and caught him in the side of the knee. He collapsed but still tried to grab at me. I kicked him in the chest until he was flat on the ground and plunged my Bowie through his forehead. What little hair he had left was now splattered in his blood as I pulled my knife free.

"Wonder if there's more of you in there. Probably but I'm not dumb enough to go in there alone. Now if Dix was here, we could go patrolling and get some wall action in. Hmm, wonder how long Dix has been with the group since he seems like Rick's second in command. Wonder if Dix was with Merle when this went down and if he was, then what happened to Merle? Didn't quite hate the man but also didn't get all goo-y inside either."


	5. Chapter 5

**Note: Studying is finished so now I get to spend more time writing...I've had a shitty day so you get 2 chapters...Enjoy! (p.s. I'm not good at writing an accent like Daryl's so there isn't much of that, plus it's a bit easier to read when it's not all redneck-y...)**

* * *

I kicked the door shut and strutted my way back humming a tune. The sky was getting dark with clouds, threatening to rain. We should put out barrels or pots or something and collect the rain water. While it wasn't 100% safe to drink at first, we could boil it or use it to clean clothes. I hurried into a jog to share my idea with the others.

"It's going to rain. If we can get a container of some sort, I can sit outside and wash clothes. I know the few clothes I have need to be scrubbed with some soap. What about you guys?" I cried as I came around the corner.

Glenn, Dix, T-Dog were dragging bodies into a pile against the inner fence. Glenn looked torn up, probably because of Hershel and the fact that he hadn't removed the blood soaked shirt he was wearing. I planted my hands on my hips and stared at the man.

"You need to stop that. They're not going anywhere. You need to go back in there, remove that top, and put something else on. You're going to tell the others that I'm doing clothes. I'm sure there's soap somewhere in this prison and it doesn't have to be the kind on a rope."

The three of them stared at me so I stared right back. The sky let out a clap of thunder and I clapped my hands.

"Perfect. Let's go get the clothes."

I ran through the open door and called for Carl to unlock the cell block. I grabbed the small armful of clothes from my backpack and went to where the others were congregated. Carol looked at my clothes in question.

"It's going to rain so I'm going to do laundry. Do you have any extra soap or something that I could collect rain water in so that I have something to dunk the clothes into? If there was enough time, I'd suggest trying to hit up the kitchen for something non-metal but then we'd have to go through the inmates and they could still be mad at me for killing their buddy."

"We have a couple bins in the back of the SUV. We could use those and I think there's soap in there too," Lori replied.

"Great. Gather up your dirty clothes and bring them out to the courtyard. I'm gonna set up there."

The raindrops were just beginning to fall when the bins and soap was brought out to me. Carol and Beth brought out the clothes and offered to help. I told Beth she should be with Hershel but didn't decline Carol's help. We laid out the clothes on the tables to get wet before we started scrubbing them down.

"We didn't mean to overhear you and Daryl yesterday but I'm sorry to hear about your son. My little girl, Sophia, became a walker and Rick had to shoot her."

"No parent should ever outlive their child. I've had time to overthink everything that happened and the what ifs. Life now is not what it was like 2years ago and I bet it'll never go back to that. We don't have to go to work, worry about bills, or what our kids might want for Christmas. Our only responsibility is to survive and protect those we know and love. I tried to protect Travis but in the end, it came down to my survival after he died. I could have just left him there but then he would have been one of those. I couldn't do that to him."

"Daryl understands what you had to do. He killed one of our group members last fall after he was bitten," she said as she worked on someone's pants.

"The survivalist part of him understands. Being a hunter makes you aware of the dangers in the wild and such. While he didn't know he had a son, the father part of him hates me. I hate myself at times."

I moved off to another table and started on those clothes. We worked in silence, scrubbing and dunking the clothes in the collected rainwater. Once everything was clean, I took my soap to the clothes I was wearing and then stripped them off to rinse them in the bins. I squeezed them out and left them on the table. When the sun comes back out, it wouldn't take long for the clothes to dry and plus there wasn't space to hang everything up inside to dry out.

"AJ, what are you doing?" Carol asked.

"I'm going to shower."

I washed my hair with the soap first and then tried to get the dirt off my skin. It would have been so much better if I could take off my bra and underwear and get everywhere but knowing my luck, Rick or Glenn would come out and spot me. The rain was clearing some of the soap off my skin but it wasn't enough so I picked up the smaller bin and dumped it over my head.

"Now that felt good. Cold but good. Did you want to get cleaned up? I could keep watch for ya."

Carol thought about it a moment before nodding. I turned my back and watched the doorway. I ran my fingers through my hair and after getting tangled, I decided it was time to cut it. It was getting too long and bulky. I'd get someone to cut it off for me once we headed back inside. Carol tapped me on the shoulder, telling me she was done.

"You either stripped down, got clean, and redressed or you showered in your clothes."

"I'm still cleaner than before."

"Whatever. Maybe it's just me but when I get clean, I need to wash everything."

"Not all of us look like you, AJ."

"I'm not perfect, Carol. Besides you've got a decent body. I'm going to head in and snag a sheet or something to make a toga. Doubt Rick or Lori want Carl to see me walking around in my underwear."

The rain didn't last much longer after that. Since the sun wasn't beating down on the clothes directly, it took a while before they were dry. Dinnertime was nearing and Rick mentioned about checking out the kitchen. We would see what was there and then do the splitting up once the inmates had a cleared cell block to call their own.

I couldn't fall asleep that night so I pulled out the worn deck of cards out of my backpack and played a few hands of Solitaire. Times like this I wished I had electricity and my laptop. I didn't have to spend my time surfing the 'Net but having my music and something to busy my fingers with was quiet and perfect.

"Ya never did sleep much when we were younger," Dix whispered as he sat down beside me outside of my cell.

"Not unless you drove me into the ground. Tell me how you became part of the group."

Dix took a second and rehashed what happened to him since this all started. He told me about Merle and only finding his hand later. As he told me about the visit he had with Merle in the woods, I knew that he hadn't shared this with anyone. I could tell that Dix felt connected to Sophia while he tried searching for her and that he cared about the little girl.

"What about ya, AJ?"

"I was visiting friends in Savannah when the shit hit the fan. Because of my experience in survival, hunting and being outdoors, they brought their friends in. At first there was a group of nearly 30 people, mostly people in their 20s or 30s. Travis was the only kid and everyone kept their eyes on him but he was better than some with what weapons we had. We stuck around Savannah for a few weeks, celebrated Travis' birthday, but the city was getting overwhelmed. We heard about Fort Benning and thought it was a good idea.

"We lost a few on the way towards Fort Bening including my best friend. The group made it to Macon and found somewhere to hole up when Travis was scratched. Afterwards I couldn't stick around the city so we moved along. We made it to Fort Benning but it was gone. We just kept moving. We spent the winter in one place, lost one to illness but the walkers didn't give us any trouble.

"Last week we moved on and were overrun southeast of here. A few weren't on guard and were taken out pretty quick. We fought back but it wasn't helping. I was shot by my best friend's brother and rather than sticking around, I took off. "

"What about the armoury ya said ya group ransacked?"

"That was at Fort Benning. I don't think it was the main one because it seemed so small. The door was locked by an electronic punch keypad and someone had an idea about going through the ceiling since we couldn't get through the door. One of our smaller women was lifted up and she worked her way over. She was able to open the door from inside and we took whatever we could carry."

"Ya one of us now. Ya don't have to leave."

"Are you sure Rick would agree with that statement? I don't want to step on anyone's toes, Dix, and obviously Rick doesn't easily trust others."

"I wouldn't either if my best friend fucked my wife after telling her that I was dead and have him second guessing my choices. Shane completely lost it and killed a kid. Rick had to kill him, well Carl did the final blow since he only turned after Rick killed him."

"What do you mean? Rick killed him so he should have stayed dead."

"When we were at the CDC, Rick learned something and Shane's walker ass proved it. Everyone is infected already. When the body dies for whatever reason, ya'll turn into a walker. Ya don't have to be bitten or scratched. A heart attack could turn ya into a walker. If anyone dies, ya take them out permanently."

"Fuck me! That's why you shot the creep after I stabbed him."

"He would have turned."

"Good to know. Thanks, Dix, for telling me. I think it's late enough to try for a few hours of sleep."

Dix left and I climbed up into bed but I still couldn't sleep. To know that anyone who died would become a walker had my mind racing. I thought of anyone I knew who died from various reasons and I pictured them as walkers. I shuddered when I thought of my father who had died a couple years after Travis was born. Would those already dead be affected or just the newly dead?

"Did you sleep at all?" Lori asked from the doorway.

"No. Dix said you learned about the infection from the CDC. Did they tell you about those who were already dead? Could each coffin be filled with a walker trying to get out?" I asked as I sat up.

"I believe the person had to be alive at one point to get infected and then they can turn so those already dead shouldn't be affected."

"Great. I was worried that I was gonna see my dad dragging his limp ass around."


	6. Chapter 6

**Note: Studying is finished so now I get to spend more time writing...Enjoy! (p.s. I'm not good at writing an accent like Daryl's so there isn't much of that, plus it's a bit easier to read when it's not all redneck-y...)**

* * *

"When are you due?"

"Any time really. Hershel has done what he could for me but now that's all messed up. He taught Carol some things and I'm sure Maggie knows about it."

"I'm here until Hershel is stable and awake so if you pop before then, I can help. Let's go do our womanly duties, cook breakfast, and then help the menfolk clear out another cell block for the prisoners."

I helped Lori and Carol cook breakfast but chose to have one of my protein bars instead. It didn't feel right eating their food but if we did split what was left in the kitchen with the prisoners, then maybe I'd take some extra for the road.

"We'll clean out a cell block and any hallways in between. Then we'll make our way back to the kitchen and take stock of what's there. I want this place as secure as we can get it before the end of the week," Rick said, addressing us and the prisoners on the other side of the barred door.

"When I was running around yesterday, I saw a section that had collapsed in. I couldn't see the fence from the courtyard so we might have to go through the building to check it out," I offered.

"If we can find a map of the prison, we can mark down what sections have been cleared," Dix suggested.

"Good. Finish up and we'll go. Daryl, you have point. Glenn and T-Dog, you're watching our backs. Your group and I will be in the middle. Warning you now but if any of you try something, we won't hesitate to kill you."

The prisoners nodded and raised what weapons they had. Obviously since Rick hadn't mentioned where I would be, I was to stay behind. I didn't see the point in staying behind since this cell block would be all locked up from either end and no one could get in unless Carl unlocked the door.

"If you don't mind, I'll patrol outside. Doubt any of them got in but they might have worked their way from somewhere in the building to the courtyard."

Rick nodded and I ran to get my bow and quiver. Some of the bolts had been made from tree branches but I still had a few real ones. As long as they were sharp enough and pierced their brains, it didn't matter if they got a splinter or two. Carl unlocked the door and we moved into the outer room with the prisoners. Dix handed another set of keys to Glenn who walked me to the door leading outside.

"If for whatever reason you get overrun, head up into the tower and block the door. We'll check on you later," he said with little emotion behind it.

I took a sweeping look as I exited and waited while the door was locked behind me. I did a round of the main courtyard and checked under the vehicles. I could see the dozen or two walkers who were pushing themselves into the fence on the outer perimeter but there was no way in. I checked on the rolling gates and saw the makeshift locks.

"Must have been Dix's idea for those," I chuckled.

Making my way up to the gun tower, I had a clear view of this side of the prison. I still couldn't make out the collapsed section. I pulled the binoculars from my pocket and scanned the open fields and tree line around the outer fence. At first I thought I was seeing more walkers but I watched and saw the difference. The small group of 4 men were trying to blend in but once they were around the walkers, they pulled out their weapons.

The slaughter of the walkers around the group was quick and quiet. Most knew not to use their guns and had sharp knives or axes. One had a device strapped to his arm with a blade on the end. When the man turned around and the sun caught his face, I swore. I guess it's true that no one but a Dixon can kill a Dixon because there Merle stood alive, surviving the brutal amputation. One of the men was staring up at the prison with interest. His gun belt hung low on his hip and he was wearing a vest over a shirt and jeans. I watched as the other men looked to him for information.

I should head in and tell the others but there's no way inside and if Merle's group watched the courtyard, they would see me. At this distance they wouldn't know who I was but would know that I'm alive and not a walker. I stayed in the tower and watched them as they slaughtered walkers and walked the outer fence. I swore when I saw them reach a section of the fence that had been wired closed.

Hurrying down the stairs, I stood straight against the tower to check their position again. Their focus was on the fence so I ran full speed to the wall on the other side of the courtyard. Checking again, I shifted myself to a window that was near the cell block. Since Merle's group couldn't see me, I turned and tapped the glass with my machete. Doubting Carl or the others would understand Morse code, I did a few taps, waited, and tapped again.

After a minute or two of tapping, the outer door opened and I ran in. Maggie locked it behind her.

"Where are the others?"

"AJ, what's wrong?"

"Scouting party. Only four of them but they found where you clipped the fence to get in."

"Shit. They haven't come back yet."

"Open the door and I'll find them. We need to know what we're going to do."

Maggie unlocked the door and I hurried through. I had my bow raised and my knife in my hand in case I needed it quickly. The machete was tucked into my belt but easily accessible. I was careful clearing each corner and listening for anyone. I could hear movement ahead but unsure if friend or foe. It was one of the prisoners fighting off a walker. No one else was around so he must have been separated. I shot a bolt and took the walker out.

"Where are the others?" I demanded.

"It's been years since I've seen a woman," he leered as he stepped closer. "Almost as long since I've been with one."

"Like I'm just going to strip down and fuck you because of that. Now where are the others before I decide that the world needs one less pervert in it?"

He still advanced and I couldn't afford the time to reload so I let it drop on the strap around my chest and pulled up my machete. His skin was so shiny and as he moved closer, I caught the stench. I couldn't help myself.

"Jesus Christ, man. When's the last time you showered? I doubt if you were the last man on Earth surrounded by nymphomaniacs, you would get any."

He charged at me howling in anger. I planted my feet and swung the blade up from the floor. It got him where it counted but didn't slice through his body like in the movies. It took a bit of muscle to rip the blade free from his bleeding pelvis. Rather than watch him suffer in pain, I swung the blade in the opposite direction, right down into his head.

"I guess I'll just have to find them myself."

I hurried through the next couple hallways before heading to the kitchen. I knew they would be going there eventually. Peaking around the door, I spotted several guns and one Horton crossbow aimed at me.

"Such a great welcoming committee. Rick, I need to talk to you."

Rick and Dix came over while the others continued separating the food.

"There's a scouting party outside the perimeter. I watched them for a bit and they found the entrance in the fence. All men with close combat weapons, guns too, hanging from their hips."

"Anything else?"

"One seemed to stare up at the prison most of the time. I recognized one but not sure where he'd stand if we had to fight."

"What ya mean, AJ?" Dix asked.

I sighed and looked Dix straight on.

"It's your brother Merle."


	7. Chapter 7

**Note: Studying is finished so now I get to spend more time writing...Enjoy! (p.s. I'm not good at writing an accent like Daryl's so there isn't much of that, plus it's a bit easier to read when it's not all redneck-y...)**

**Note2: I'm working on Chapter 9 and it's getting darker...the big question is, Do I leave it there or continue? So many choices on where to take it or do I let you work out your own ending?**

* * *

"Fuck! I'll go out and talk to him."

"We'll go out and see if they're still there. How many were there, AJ?" Rick asked.

"Four. If we have at least that many or more, they might not rush the prison."

The group left the food and hurried back to C block and then outside. Maggie was outside in the tower and the scouting party was still there but had worked their way into the outer ring. I glanced over at Dix and saw him biting his nails. I smiled faintly and slapped his shoulder.

"Remember what I told you when we were together if I caught you doing that?"

"Now's not the time to be dropping my pants, AJ."

"It would give them something to stare at."

"Whoa. Too much info, guys. We have better things to worry about," Glenn said.

"I say go out there and talk to them. If they don't want to listen, then force them out," I offered.

Rick motioned for Dix, Glenn, T-Dog, and the two prisoners to go with him. As they walked through the courtyard to get to the gate, I hurried up the stairs to the tower to Maggie. She was watching them proceed towards the small group and I caught the moment when Merle noticed his brother.

" 'Hey, Darlina. Still with these fuckers I see,' " I said in a Merle impression.

"What are you doing, AJ?"

"Can't hear what they're saying so I thought I'd make up their dialogue. Now Dix says, 'Merle. Why the fuck didn't ya stay up on that fucking roof?'"

" 'And waste away in that heat?' " Maggie tried.

"Nah, he thrives in the heat. Something about seeing a drop of sweat run down chests of women, I don't know. His response would be more like 'Nobody chains a Dixon especially a black man.' He'd use another word because he can be quite a racist asshole."

Maggie and I watched the groups talk and when I caught one of the men reaching for the gun on his hip, I quickly raised my bow and let a bolt fly. It landed in the ground before the man startling the groups.

"That's a warning shot. Reach for your gun again and it'll be through your nuts," I yelled.

Not long after the scouting party left, Merle included. Dix ripped the bolt from the ground and they headed back. I jogged down the steps and waited for them. Rick glared at me and headed back into the prison.

"Ya nearly shot their leader," Dix said, handing over the bolt.

"He was going for his gun. What were you talking about cuz Maggie and I couldn't quite keep up with creating our own version?"

"They ain't too happy we're here. I guess too close for comfort or something. Rick and him ain't agreeing on what to do. They want us out."

"Too fucking bad for them. What about your brother?"

Dix looked back at where they had been and adjusted the bow on his shoulder. He shrugged and headed towards the door.

"Dix, what did Merle say?"

"He said nothing."

I knew Dix was hiding something but I knew better than to push him. Even when we were younger, if you pushed too hard he would clam up and not speak. And I mean literally not speak. I think he went nearly a week without speaking to me once when I asked about his scars. Eventually he spoke to me only because I withheld sex until he did so. He didn't say much except, 'The Fucker' and then threw me onto the bed to make up for the lost time.

"I'll relieve Maggie of watch duty. She should be with her father. I guess when you have the other block cleared for the few prisoners who are left, I'll clear out. I don't think my warning shot warmed Rick up to me at all."

"There ain't no fucking way you're going back out there, AJ. They'll be looking for someone with a bow and I ain't gonna risk them taking you."

"Aw, how sweet of you, Dix. Caring for little ol' me."

"Shut ya mouth."

I skipped over and smacked a kiss onto his cheek before turning around to the tower. I waved Maggie down and ran up the stairs to begin my watch of the grounds. As I walked the tower and tried to look out over the entire prison, I kept count of the walkers along the perimeter. I'd make a finger-gun and pretend to blow their brains out, complete with sound effects and everything.

"You should be wearing a hat or staying in the shade."

"Hat's in my backpack and you can't see the entire yard from inside the tower. Should you even be out here, Lori?"

"Tell me about your son."

The request came out of the blue and my breath was knocked from my lungs. I dropped my bow to my side and turned to stare at the pregnant woman.

"I can't. It's…I…no," I stammered.

"When Carl was lying in that bed trying to survive against the gun shot, I felt like a horrible mother. There was nothing I could do to help him and when it looked like he might not make it, I even told Rick that maybe he was better off dead. That way he wouldn't have to live in a world like this.

"Rick was angry with me for even suggesting it but now I know he didn't want to have to kill our son if he turned. Carl made it and it spared Rick the heartache briefly until Sophia was found. That girl had worked her way into everyone's hearts and it must have felt like Rick was killing his own daughter but it's become part of this new world. We can't hesitate to kill because it could mean our survival."

"Why are you telling me this, Lori? How did you go from wanting to know about Travis to telling me that it's kill or be killed? I know that already."

"Because I don't think I'll make it through the delivery and I want you to spare Rick or Carl the heartache if I need to be killed. I don't want my husband or son to feel what you felt when you had to kill Travis. I'm making this request to everyone."

I tipped my head in her direction and turned back to the yard.

* * *

Over the next few days, things at the prison seemed to turn around. Hershel had regained consciousness and we settled into a nice routine. Lori, Carol, and Beth kept the cells and the small eating area clean with the occasional help from Maggie and I. Those decent enough with a weapon were put on watch detail in the tower or on perimeter walks. The 2 prisoners left, Axel and Oscar, slept in their own cell block but would help out with the watch detail as long as someone from our group was with them. Rick and Dix didn't quite trust them just yet.

The food we had was getting low so Dix and I had discussed going out to hunt or doing a run. Rick pushed for a run first and then offset whatever we found with squirrel or any other meat we could kill.

"Glenn, Daryl, and T-Dog will go out. Take the SUV and grab whatever you can. I'll keep watch in the tower until you get back."

I exchanged a look with Dix and shook my head. It had been my idea to do a run since I noticed the amount of food we had after breakfast was made. I had talked with Lori and Carol to see how long we could possibly ration it for and then brought it up with Dix. For whatever reason, Rick still didn't see me part of the group. I gave each of the guys a hug and made them promise to come back safe before turning back around to head inside.

Out of the corner of my left eye, I caught movement. It took another glance to see that it wasn't one of our members. It was a slow moving dead prison guard. I grabbed my knife and ran over as the others finally noticed it. I jammed the knife into his brain through where his ear had been. I was pulling the blade through when another walker staggered towards me.

"Fucking hell. Where are these walkers coming from?" I screamed as I stabbed the next walker.

An alarm started going off through the speakers in two second bursts. I checked around the corner and saw a couple walkers, which I took out with my bow. I jogged back to the group as Rick and Glenn shot out the speakers. While the noise wasn't loud in the courtyard, it was still going off inside the prison.

"Where the fuck is the control room?" Rick yelled at Oscar.

"I'll show ya."

He led Rick and Dix off into the prison while the rest of the group started to take out the walkers who had dragged their dead asses into the courtyard. Beth hurried Hershel and Carl to one of the cage walkways and locked themselves in. Glenn and Axel ran through the clumps of walkers to get to the open gate at the other end of the courtyard. I hurried to Lori's side and ushered her inside with Carol and T-Dog. There were walkers inside our cell block so we took off down into the hallways.

"We need to find a spot for Lori. She can't be running around this close to delivery," I said as I flung my knife at a walker.

"Too late. Contractions have already started," she panted.

"Fuck me. OK. We need to find a room and barricade ourselves inside."

"Arg!" T-Dog screamed.

His arm was outstretched to stab a walker but a woman with half her face clawed out came up and sunk her teeth into his skin. I slammed my machete home into her head before prying her teeth out of T-Dog's forearm.

"I'll get you somewhere safe first," he promised.

The four of us took off down a hallway before stopping at the end to open the door. I did a quick check before ushering everyone inside. T-Dog shook his head and stepped back.

"I'm already a goner. Go, bring that baby into this world."

I gave him a small smile which he returned before slamming the door shut. I shooed Lori and Carol further into the room before we heard the gunshot. Lori grabbed her knees and screamed out through a contraction.

"I know this hurts, Lori, but you have to keep quiet. Get her on the floor and I'll make sure there's no other entrances to this room."

I ran around the large room, around the large laundry machines to see if we would be safe there. There was one other doorway but it was closed. Lori let out another scream but not nearly as loud as the first. Hurrying back, I found Carol checking on Lori. Her hands were covered in blood.

"She's not dilating fast enough. We have to get the baby out."

"C-section with Carl. Cut me open," Lori gasped.

"You won't survive it. I'm not Hershel," Carol whispered.

Lori stared up at me and I knew she was reminding me of what we talked about. I pulled a bolt out of my quiver and handed it to her. She placed it in between her teeth and I grabbed the knife Dix had given me years before. Dropping to my knees, I felt around her pregnant belly to see if I could feel the position of the baby.

"The baby hasn't turned yet."

"Just do it," Lori breathed as another contraction hit.

Carol grabbed Lori's hand and squeezed as the knife bit into the skin. I dragged the knife across her belly where the C-section scar was but not deep enough to go through the skin and the amniotic sac. It took another cut before I was through. Crudely I cut through the sac and bit down on the handle of the knife to free-up my hands. I moved my hands inside and felt for the baby. I grabbed its legs and pulled. The baby came through the incision well and I quickly supported its head. I showed the little girl to Lori before placing it on her stomach. The umbilical cord was tied off and cut. Lori reached out and ran a hand over her daughter's head. The girl let out a small shriek and she smiled weakly as I noticed she was slowly dying in front of us.

"Thank you."

There was no point in trying to stem the flow of blood. I pulled off the ripped flannel shirt that I had borrowed from Dix that morning and handed it to Carol to wrap the baby in. Once she was wrapped up, I motioned for Carol to step away. She said goodbye to Lori and took the baby away.

"I will watch over your family. I promise to keep Carl and your daughter safe."

Lori didn't say anything but her eyes were getting glassy. When she finally died from blood loss, I apologized before running my knife through her head. I took a second to find a blanket and covered her body. Carol and the baby were standing next to the door waiting.

"Let's go find the others," she whispered.

I cracked the door and scanned the hallway before opening it completely. Carol slipped out and I shut the door behind me. I knew we would need to bury Lori's body and didn't want a walker to get at it. I covered Carol from behind but checked each corner before motioning her through. We finally made it back to the eating area and the walkers who had been in our cell block were gone.

"Where's Lori? Carol? AJ?"

I pushed the semi-open door and looked outside. They were all standing in the courtyard so Carol went through holding onto the baby. She nudged the chain-link door with her hip and stepped out. All eyes were on her except Dix. He had looked over briefly at the baby but his green eyes were on me. It might have been because my entire outfit was covered in Lori's blood.

"Rick, it's a girl," Carol announced, tears dripping down her cheeks.

"Lori? Where's Lori?"

Neither of us said anything and Rick cried out. He took a step towards Carol but then swung around to face me.

"You killed her."

"I did what she asked me to. What she asked everyone to do."

Rick's Python was pointing right at me in a second and he took a step forward. I tried not to flinch at the gun nearly an inch from my head.

"I want you gone."


	8. Chapter 8

**Note: Studying is finished so now I get to spend more time writing...Enjoy! (p.s. I'm not good at writing an accent like Daryl's so there isn't much of that, plus it's a bit easier to read when it's not all redneck-y...)**

**Note2: I decided to rewrite what I had for Chapter 9 so that it wouldn't go darker and this way I can continue on with the story for a bit longer...  
**

* * *

I bit my lip and gave him a nod. I turned around to go back inside to get my backpack.

"Would you rather it have been Carl if he had been there?" I said only loud enough for him to hear.

I strode into the cell block and headed up the stairs to where I was sleeping. I stuffed a few things into the backpack and grabbed the strap. I stopped at Dix's bed and dropped a picture of Travis onto it. While I had told him a bit about Travis before this all happened, there was plenty more that I wanted him to know. Until Rick cools down, a picture of his son would have to be enough. I slipped my bow and quiver off my shoulder and also left it behind. I knew it would be better if I didn't try to say anything so I just gave everyone a weak smile once I was back outside. My feet slowly headed towards the gate.

"Come on, Rick. Ya can't let her leave. It ain't safe."

"Daryl's right. She won't survive out there with all those walkers."

"She killed my wife!" he yelled, waving his gun around.

_ I wasn't the one to get her pregnant_, I thought, pushing my arms through the straps of the backpack.

"Where's ya bow?" Dix screamed, trying to pull out of Glenn's arms.

I opened the gate and walked through.

"Like you said, they'll be looking for someone with a bow. I will be wanting it back, Dix, so don't you dare destroy it. I will keep my promise."

Rick was right behind me the entire walk to the outer fence, his gun drawn down at his side. He unhooked the cords and I carefully stepped out. Without a word he secured the fence and stared at me until I backed away. I took stock of my surroundings before running off into the woods.

I ran away from the prison but kept it in my sights. I ducked behind a tree and watched as Rick waited before turning around. Dix finally broke free from Glenn and began swearing at the group. His hands were in the air gesturing. When Rick finally made it back up to the courtyard, he exchanged some words with the redneck. Dix was able to get in a good right hook before flipping him off. All Rick did was stare at his daughter for a moment before walking away.

"That bastard better look after her or he will be getting an ass-whopping when I get back," I spat as I finally turned away from the prison.

I needed to find a place to rest up and gather food before I came back to keep watch. Patting down my weapons, I strapped the backpack down and began my journey through the woods. Now that I didn't have my bow, any walkers had to be closer for me to get rid of it. Not many noticed me and as I ran, I thought of why.

It had to be the blood or at least the smell. I was covered in Lori's and I did wipe my machete off on my pants once or twice after killing a walker. Making my way to the road, I noticed a sign for a nearby town.

"Fifteen miles! Only in the apocalypse do you find out how fit you are. That's gonna take me a long time on foot. Doubt I could get one of these cars to work."

I jogged down the road, through the cars keeping an eye out for anything I could use or needed. Smashing a few windows to get at the belongings had me on edge in case of nearby walkers and them hearing the noise. The few things I stole were placed into the backpack and I continued on. When the cars began thinning, I chanced at trying to hotwire a car. It had been so many years since I had done it last but it's almost the same as riding a bike; you never forget. Plus the memory was one of my favourites. Dix had dared me to hotwire the personal car of the sheriff and move it, he would agree to go on a date with me. It was our first date of many and he actually wore clothes that weren't torn.

There wasn't much left in the gas tank according to the gauge but I just hoped it got me to the town. A few walkers limped around the edge of the road or at the entrance to the woods but there was no way they would catch up to me in a car. I did slow down when I neared the town and as I drove through. I needed to find a place that hadn't been ransacked already.

Parking the car on the next street, I jogged back over to the little pharmacy and inched the door open. Slowly and quietly, I walked through the store and grabbed everything. They had a few things for newborns but only 1 can of formula. Standing inside the window, I looked at the other store fronts. There was a Pop's General Store down on the corner but about a handful of walkers loitering around on the street.

"Shit. I could try for it but if they come after me at once, I'm done for it. If I creep around the block and come up the other way…no. I don't know what that back street is like. Oh, fuck it."

I kept my back close to the building as I tiptoed down the block. One walker had staggered up to the other end near the pharmacy and another had moved into an alley. I glanced over my shoulder when I reached the end. A few further down the street but none were near me. I heaved my backpack further up onto my shoulders and filled both hands with a weapon. Taking a deep breath, I moved out onto the street.

Finally making it to Pop's, the door was the most problem. It creaked as I opened it and I paused. I dashed inside and scoped out the remaining items. There were a few more cans and even some clothes. I was filling an old wooden crate with the things I found when I heard something. Leaving the crate behind, I moved through the store towards the back when I was jumped. We fell to the floor and my head was grabbed. It was slammed into the floor a couple of times before I found my voice.

"Stop that, you motherfucker. I'm not one of them."

The head smashing stopped and I was finally able to look at my jumper. It was a young boy with flaming red hair. What clothes he was wearing were filthy and torn. His face had caked on dirt with a few smears of blood through that.

"Told to watch the store and go for the head. Ya shouldn't be here. Pop's will skin me alive if he finds stuff missing."

I made a point of letting go of my weapons. Dix would yell at me if he saw me doing this but I needed this boy to get off of me and not attack again. The boy released my head but didn't get off of me.

"How long has it been since you saw Pop?"

He counted on his fingers since the only way to keep track of days passing were on the sun rising or sun setting. He held up a whole hand and 2 fingers. He had been left alone for a week and had somehow survived. If the dead weren't walking around and the authorities weren't a piece of the past, I would be calling Child Services at that piece of information.

"Is there anyone else here? I'm sorry to take those items but my friend really needs them."

"Just me and Pop. You didn't see him outside did you?"

"I'm AJ. What is your name?" I asked as I shifted out from under him.

When I stood, I noticed the boy reached my waist. I smoothed back his hair and stared into his eyes.

"Max. I hope Pop comes back soon. I'm not allowed to use the stove and I ate the last candy bar. You're an adult, right? Maybe you can cook me some food."

My heart broke for this little boy. Bending over, I tried to chip off some of the dirt with my thumb.

"How about a deal? I'll make some food and we can head out to find your Pop. I need to get those things back to my friend but we can take a few minutes to search. What does your Pop look like?" I asked.

"Like him," he replied, pointing.

Expecting a walker behind me, I raised my knife and pushed Max behind me. The boy was only pointing at a painting on the wall. The man was an elderly man in his sixties but his hair wasn't stark white, more like salt and pepper coloring. He was in a button up top, an apron, and a bow tie. Sadly it matched one of the walkers out on the street I saw as I was inching over to the store. Nodding, I asked Max where the stove was and he led me up some back stairs. There was a small window that looked down into the store but the room was set up like an apartment. Max pushed a chair under the doorknob before leading me into the small kitchenette. I found some beans and about half a dozen cans of Spam.

"Can opener?"

The boy shook his head. Pulling out a knife, I wiped it clean before trying to slice the lid open. It didn't take long for the beans to cook in the pot while I worked on getting the Spam can open. While my stomach rumbled at the smell of food, I let Max eat as much as he wanted. Candy bars were great for a short burst of energy but they didn't keep a body running for days.

As he ate, I walked around the apartment and gathered up items for Max, stuffing them into a small backpack. I was hoping to get back to the prison quickly but the sky let out a loud booming round of thunder. I sprinted to a window and looked out. The sky was getting dark and it looked as if it was already raining in the distance.

"Damn it. We'll have to stay the night. I hope Hershel can figure something out for the baby."

"What baby? Do you have a baby?" Max asked, wiping his mouth with the tattered end of his sleeve.

"My friend had a baby this morning. That's what I was taking, items for the baby."

"I can show you some more baby things. Mama brought us to stay with Pop when my baby brother was born."

"Max, what happened to your mother and brother?"

"Pop had to lock her up in the basement. Mama was hurt and had a fever. When she stopped moving, Pop locked the basement. He won't let me near the basement now. Jack wouldn't wake up from his nap so Pop took him outside and neither came back."

Oh, my God. How could they have survived this long only for them to get infected now? If Jack died, then there's a zombie baby somewhere. Since he might not have been old enough to chew on people's flesh, would he have starved to death? Can walkers starve to death, if they're already dead? The picture of a baby crawling around, growling and snapping its toothless mouth had me running for the sink.

"Are you OK?"

"I think so. Since it's raining, we're going to stay the night but first thing in the morning, we're leaving."

Max showed me the baby items and I was careful of taking them downstairs to the wooden crate. I couldn't take much since I might have to run with the crate in my hands. I locked up the store as best as I could before heading back upstairs to Max. He was curled up in bed and shivering. I covered him with a blanket or two and pulled out cleaner clothes for him. I took the time to change out of my blood soaked clothes and washed Lori's blood off my skin.

The first rays of sun woke me. I jolted from the chair before relaxing and looking around the apartment. Nothing had been disturbed and a glance into the store showed no walkers. I boiled some water and added it to some instant oatmeal. Sneaking a few bites, I shook Max awake.

"Breakfast is ready and there's a change of clothes. Those are pretty dirty so we'll leave them here. Did Pop have a car nearby?"

"An old noisy truck out back. Mama has a small car out front though."

While Max was eating, I checked out the store for anything else we could need but light enough to carry. There wasn't a car out front like Max had said but there was one around the corner and the walkers from yesterday were gone, including Pop. Taking a chance, I ran outside and checked the car. The owner left the keys on the seat so I scooped them up and put them in my pocket.

It took us a couple of trips to get everything outside. Since it was right there and I didn't have to lug it far, I grabbed whatever I saw. Soon Max saw what I was doing and began grabbing random things too. The car was all packed and I put Max in the back seat surrounded by the packs of toilet paper I took.

"Let's go, Max."

I pulled away from the curb and headed out to the road I drove in on. As I approached each intersection, I kept my eyes out for any movement. I was nearing the last street when I finally saw movement. I slowed the car and smiled. I would recognize those love birds anywhere. I turned the corner but stopped so I wouldn't spook them.

"Stay here, Max. I see some of my friends."

"Please don't leave me," he whispered.

"It'll be alright. Take this knife in case. I'll be right over there. They're probably here to look for things for the baby too," I said, handing over a hunting knife.

Opening my door, I leaned out and let out a whistle. Glenn's head popped up from the SUV where he was standing. He waved so I hurried over. Maggie was standing in the doorway with a basket of formula. I grabbed Glenn in a hug and he awkwardly hugged me back.

"Daryl will be happy to see you safe."

"Rick won't be."

"No one has seen Rick since he kicked you out yesterday. It'll take a bit of time for him to understand that you were doing what Lori wanted you to but I'm sure he'll come around. What are you doing here though? Carol thought you'd climb a tree and keep watch. Something about a promise." Glenn asked.

"I was going to do just that but thought you'd need things for the baby so I came here. I found a little boy abandoned by his grandfather and he's tucked away in that Toyota with everything I took. Did you find anything else than the formula because I have some clothes for the baby and anyone who will fit them, some food, and random shit?"

Maggie had gone back inside to gather more things while we talked. Glenn looked up and in an instant, I knew something was wrong. His hand flew to the gun on his hip and I wiped around pulling out my machete.

"Merle," the Korean breathed.


	9. Chapter 9

**Note: Studying is finished so now I get to spend more time writing...Enjoy! (p.s. I'm not good at writing an accent like Daryl's so there isn't much of that, plus it's a bit easier to read when it's not all redneck-y...)**

* * *

The man sneered and stepped forward. Glenn pulled his weapon and aimed it at the redneck. I could see something poking out from under a jacket which draped over his arm. Taking a second to remember what Dix said, it was covering his right hand so maybe it was to conceal the stump.

"Ain't it my favourite chink. Who's the new sugar-tits? Picking up strays along the way?"

He stepped forward and Glenn took a step back. Instead of following Glenn, I took a step forward. Merle seemed to find this amusing because he laughed.

"Sugar-tits has a bigger pair of balls than you."

"Well, anyone's are bigger than yours, Merle. You did have a habit of falling asleep naked at your cabin."

I brushed the hair away from my face so Merle could see me. The sneer only grew dark and probably had Glenn pissing his pants. I knew what Merle was capable of and raising his hand to a woman would only be last resort. First he would try to terrorize and intimidate, then try to make you believe you deserve the punishment before getting physical.

"Well, well. Ain't it Daryl's whore."

"Better Dix's whore than your bitch. Surprised that you're still alive after fucking those disease ridden sluts all those years."

"Ah, come on. Admit it. You want a piece of ol' Merle. You always did follow me around."

"Wasn't because of you and just the idea makes me sick."

Over Merle's shoulder, I saw Max open the car door. I couldn't let him be seen but any indication that he was there, Merle would go after him. For a second I glanced at Max and then back at Glenn. He understood what I was doing but it also gave Merle time to reach for his gun. He aimed and shot at the back window of the SUV. Glenn dived one way and I dove another. I heard Max scream and tried to cover it with my own.

My knife was torn from my hand and a blade was pressed into my neck. I felt Merle pull me into his embrace and then the muzzle of the gun against my temple. If I reared back and head butted him, he might release me or he could slice my neck open with his knife-hand in front of a 7year old boy.

I looked back and Max was gone. I couldn't see if he had gotten back into the car or what though. Glenn inched around the back of the SUV and aimed at Merle's head.

"Tsk, tsk, Chinaman. One wrong step and her pretty little head goes splat. Now back up and drop the gun."

Glenn was hesitant so Merle cocked the hammer back on his gun. He wasn't joking of shooting me in the head.

"Glenn, please. For Maggie and Max," I pleaded.

The gun in Glenn's hand was placed on the road and he stepped back.

"Now, you're going to get behind the wheel and drive. None of that fucking Asian driving either, straight down the road."

He pulled me up and pushed me into the backseat of the SUV while Glenn went around to get into the driver's seat. As we drove away, I glanced back and saw Max standing next to the car. I could only hope that Maggie took him back to the prison. All I know was that Dix was going to be fucking pissed off.

Merle's left hand laid heavy on my thigh with the blade strapped to his right arm pointing in my direction. His fingers began moving along my thigh towards my knee only to come down my inner thigh. I tried not to flinch away but he poked the tip of his blade into my chest. I stopped moving and closed my eyes. The blade traveled down biting into the skin leaving a small trail of blood behind. My shirt soaked it up as the cut continued to bleed. My sweat was getting into the cut and stinging but now wasn't the time to be a little bitch and complain about something that minor.

"And what's this?" he asked, letting go of my thigh to reach for the locket.

Rather than pull out the chain, he shoved his hand down my top to find it and only pulled it out after copping a feel. The tip was pressed harder into my stomach in a silent demand to open it. I let out a deep breath and reached up for the locket. I looked at Travis briefly before showing the picture to his uncle. Merle stared at the picture briefly.

"Has the Dixon eyes. Knew ya were fucking my brother but didn't know about a baby."

"I came back but Dix was gone and you were in jail again."

"Where is he? He with Daryl?"

"Where are we going, Merle?" Glenn tried asking to distract him from Travis.

"Shut ya fucking mouth. Now where is he?" Merle spat, shifting in his seat so he was facing me more than sitting beside me.

"Macon. He was scratched. He didn't make it," I replied, taking a deep breath to calm my nerves. I didn't want to rehash everything to this asshole.

"Ya dumb fucking bitch. Can't even keep a child alive. How hard is it to watch over him?" he yelled, backhanding me in the face. "Knew you were useless even when ya were younger. Could barely hunt and made Daryl do everything for ya out in the woods. Us Dixons would have raised that boy right."

"Like your father raised you? I would rather Travis be dead than growing up like you. Dix had to raise himself most of the time and deal with those beatings from your old man since you spent more time in Juvie and jail than staying at home protecting your brother."

Merle's large hand wrapped around my throat strangling me. After the first squeeze, he stabbed his knife hand into my thigh. I let out a small whimper since I couldn't get much past the hand around my throat. I couldn't even struggle because if I moved my leg too much it would cause more damage and I was already beginning to feel lightheaded.

"You're mine now, bitch. I'll teach ya the proper place for a Dixon woman."

Darkness webbed a path over my vision and before it was complete and unconsciousness took me away, I felt Merle kiss me.


	10. Chapter 10

**Note: Enjoy! (p.s. I'm not good at writing an accent like Daryl's so there isn't much of that, plus it's a bit easier to read when it's not all redneck-y...)**

* * *

When I came to, I was sitting in a metal chair with my hands and feet tied down. The pain in my thigh was a constant throb so I wanted to see what Merle had done to it. My pants were gone leaving me in my underwear and a bandage was wrapped around my thigh. Blood had soaked through the gauze but not the entire way through since you could only see a hint of red through the wrapped bandage. My throat was sore and parched from being strangled.

"I see you're finally awake. You had us worried, my dear."

Stepping into my field of vision was the man from the scouting party, the leader.

"I'm not your dear. Now would you kindly release me from this bondage nightmare so I can kick Merle's ass?" I croaked.

"Bondage, my dear? Now why would your mind go there?" he said, carrying over a glass of water with a straw.

I didn't want to drink in case he had slipped something inside, but if he was going to try to keep up this conversation, I needed to be able to talk. I sipped at the cool liquid and felt the small burn in my throat. Giving it a few seconds, I didn't feel any different so I looked at the man.

"I'm strapped to a fucking chair practically naked. Oh, and the fact that Merle threatened me with a 'proper place'. I knew that man before all this shit happened and heard what some women said about him so I wouldn't put it past him. Although I'd expect being tied to a bed not a chair."

"Merle is preoccupied with your friend Glenn," he smiled. "You were at the prison that day. He said that you know how to use a crossbow."

"So what? If you had reached for your gun, I would have shot you in the balls. Made you suffer for trying to harm my people."

"How long have you been with the group?"

I didn't answer him and stared at the metal sheeting that covered the walls. I noticed a few cut outs along the top near the ceiling. He inched closer and grabbed my chin to bring my eyes back to him.

"How long have you been with the group?" he repeated.

"Nearly since the beginning," I lied. "I stumbled across the group after I lost my son."

"Lost? Killed is more like it. You couldn't watch out for him, like a mother should, and he became infected."

"You have no fucking idea what I went through with Travis. Don't you fucking judge me because I did what I could to keep my son safe. I would rather have died in his place than go through that again."

"How many people are at the prison?"

"Between 50 and 75. We found some prison staff and prisoners tucked away who survived the riots and outbreak. They weren't too happy when Rick told them about your unscheduled visit. You must have forgotten that conjugal visits are only every second Friday so you could see Bubba."

The leader dropped my chin and dug his thumb into my thigh wound. Fire ignited in my blood from the pain rushing throughout my body. I bit my tongue from screaming out and clenched the armrests turning my knuckles white. He eased off on the wound which had torn open again, blood dripping down my thigh onto the floor.

"If I was in your position, I would keep my mouth shut," he hissed.

"And you would be dressed in all of your clothes because there's only one man I want to see naked and you're no Daryl Dixon. When they find out we're missing, they're going to come to wherever the fuck we are and get us out. If they have to kill you and your underlings, they will because that's what family does for one another."

"Like when you killed your son to protect your own ass."

"What the fuck do you know about it? I bet if your wife or child was infected and turned, you'd be too big of a pussy to do what is needed. I'd rather…"

He grabbed my hair and pulled my head back. I was forced to look up at him and the look I received sent a chill down my back. I could tell that this man had killed and not just the walkers but humans too. My hair was wrapped around his hand and he would tug it farther down so my neck had to bend and my body arching out from the chair so I wouldn't snap my neck. His brown eyes gazed down at me and the look in them went from anger to retribution.

"Maybe Merle was right and you need to learn your place, my dear," he threatened, running his free hand down my chest and under my top. "You'll find out that I'm more man than your Daryl Dixon. And if they do come for you, he will be the first one I kill."

As his hand groped my breast and pulled my head back further, the door opposite the chair opened.

"Governor, there's a breach on the south wall," a deep, accented voice said.

He squeezed my breast once more before letting go and stepping away. This so called Governor stared down at me while I rearranged myself in the chair.

"We'll continue this later, my dear, after I have killed your group. Martinez, take her the back way to my quarters."

The newcomer waited until the asshole stepped out of the room before taking a long look at me.

"Is this entire group made up of perverts? Oh wait. Maybe it's a male only group and you're tired of giving a hand to another guy."

He stalked closer slowly until he came to the edge of the chair. I couldn't kick out at him or grab for him so I spat on him. He backhanded me across the face and was quick to gag me. Bringing up his gun, he used the butt of it to knock me across the head. The pain shocked my system and while I should have blacked out, I didn't. I felt more awake but Martinez expected me to be out cold. So I played along.

I slumped in the chair, my head hanging down against my chest. I had to will myself not to flinch or move as he undid the bindings on my wrists and ankles. He was quick to heave me over his shoulder and after a quick ass grab, we were moving out of the room. I could hear a commotion in the next metal room and for a brief second, I thought I heard Glenn's voice. Blood dripped down Martinez's back from my head wound and the front of his shirt was soaking through from the reopened wound on my thigh.

We slipped outside but it was in an alley way. I could hear people screaming and gun fire but I was more focused on where we were going. He climbed up a flight of stairs and was quick to open a door. From what I could see out of the corner of my eyes, we were in a large room. Half of it looked like a living area and the other held a table and chairs. This must be where the Governor lived. His minion carried me over to the bed and threw me down. I bounced but didn't react any other way.

"Maybe when he's finished with you, he'll allow us to have a turn," he whispered, grabbing something from a nearby chair and tying my hands with it.

Martinez didn't bother to tie my feet before he left. I counted 60 long seconds between when that door shut and me cracking my eyes open. He had used a belt to secure my hands to the bed railing but had done a piss poor job at it. It took a couple of chances but I was able to turn over and twist my hands in the belt. Breathing through the pain, I sat up on my knees and moved closer. To get any room in the bindings, I had to use my teeth to unwind a bit of the belt.

There was a noise in the hallway so I stilled. I listened as the floor creaked outside the door. The gun fire and screaming were still happening outside so I doubted the Governor had come for a quickie. The doorknob turned and a stealthy figure crept inside. With a sheet acting as a divider between that section of apartment and where I was, I could only make out the basic form of a woman holding something in her hands. She was moving away from me.

The pain in my thigh was getting to be too much and I needed to shift on the bed. When I did, the frame squeaked and I swore. My eyes snapped up to the sheet waiting for the woman to come see what the noise was.

"Please, help me," I whispered, not wanting her to attack.

I couldn't be too sure who she was but I knew she must be looking for something or waiting for the Governor to come back to ambush him. From what moonlight shone through the windows, I made out a black woman in dark pants and a white vest. The moonlight sparkled off the sharp sword she held.

"Please untie me and then you can kill the fucker. I'm assuming that's what you are here for. I want to watch as his blood runs from his body."

She was debating if I was a threat. I shifted in my binding so she could see that I was injured. I told her she could just untie my hands from the bed and I would leave. I needed to find my group but if she did allow me to stay and watch her kill the fucker, I would find them with a smile on my face.

"They did say someone else was taken aside from the Asian boy."

"That's Glenn. I'm AJ and I just want to get out of here. Sure, I'd love to castrate a few of them here but beggars can't be choosers. I really don't want to be here so that fucker can rape me like he said he was going to."

The woman came over and used her blade to slice through the belt. It cut in a perfect place that I could free my hands. I grabbed the sheet from the bed and ripped a long strip off. I wrapped it over the bloody bandage and tied it off with a knot. The pain was an easy 7 when I stood but I needed to get out of there. My steps pushed the pain higher.

"Thank you."

"You're still in your underwear," she pointed out.

"Might as well use it to my advantage until I can get a weapon."


	11. Chapter 11

**Note: Enjoy! (p.s. I'm not good at writing an accent like Daryl's so there isn't much of that, plus it's a bit easier to read when it's not all redneck-y...)**

**Note2: Since it's been awhile since I posted and I can't post until after the holiday, I'm giving you a long chapter...  
**

* * *

I left the woman in the apartment and made my way down the backstairs. The screaming had eased up and there was less gunfire. I nearly made it to the side wall when I heard a gun being cocked behind my head.

"Raise your hands."

I did as I shuffled to face the man. I broke out into a smile at Rick's face. He lowered his gun and reached for me as I stumbled.

"Come on. We need to get you out of here."

"Did you get Glenn out? Is everyone OK? Did Maggie get Max back to the prison?"

"Yes to all. Daryl's laying down cover fire for us. You and Glenn need to be looked over by Hershel."

"Fuck this. I'm not leaving without Dix."

"AJ, you're bleeding all over. Do you think you're in any condition of helping Daryl?"

"Man, I swear you're bipolar or something because not even 2days ago, you were threatening to kill me. Go and take Glenn back. I'll find Dix and we'll get out together."

"I'm not leaving you behind."

I glared at Rick briefly before dropping my shoulders in defeat. I gave him a brief nod and followed behind him as he tugged my hand along. We made it to the wall and Rick offered to push me up.

"I'd rather if you pulled me up so that way your hands aren't near my ass," I replied.

The man understood and started climbing up. He laid over the hood of the bus and leaned down to offer his hand. Rather than grabbing for his hand, I grabbed the gun in his other hand and took off as fast as I could. I ducked into an alley and waited. The gunfire ended and in what silence there was I could make out the distinct scuffle of a fight. I couldn't move from my spot or the lights would catch me and someone could spot me.

"Take him to the ring. The Governor wants to address the town," a voice said as they walked past the alley way.

I chanced sticking my head out and saw the back of Dix's jacket with the wings. Glancing the opposite direction, I didn't see anyone so I crept from the alley and stuck close to the buildings. I watched as they led Dix into a warehouse and through the side windows, I could make out torches. I circled the building and spotted the bleachers and people as they entered the area.

I needed some kind of plan to rescue Dix but without knowing how many people would show up and my limited ammo, I was sorely uninformed. Spotting stairs, I headed up so I could get a better view. Coming out on the second floor, I went to the window and looked down. There were at least 50 people in the crowd, maybe only a handful or two with weapons. Opening the chamber on the Python that I took off Rick, I noticed that there were only 4 bullets left. I had to take out the biggest threats.

The Governor stalked out from the warehouse and I noticed the bandage wrapped around his head. The black woman must have injured him good but I would have preferred if she had killed him. Merle came up beside him, looking a bit uneasy but still the asshole I know.

"What can I say? We haven't had a night like this since the walls went up. The fear we felt then is the same fear we felt tonight. I failed you. I promised to keep you all safe but hell, look at me."

He turned around in a circle so everyone could see him. One of his eyes was bandaged over and I smiled. Too bad whatever got him in the eye didn't go far enough in to pierce his brain.

"I wish I could say that we will be safe but I won't. I can't. I'm afraid for our town. Terrorists want to destroy us, take what we have. What's worse is one of those terrorists is one of our own. Merle, a man I counted on, a man I trusted. And he led them here."

The shit was right since Merle did bring us here but there was no way Dix and the others caught our trail after all that time. The bastard was pitting the town against Merle for a different reason and was probably going to use this as a perfect time to bring Dix out.

The men disarmed Merle and pushed him into the center of the ring. The man kept going on about how he couldn't believe that a man he saved would have betrayed him like that.

"We were able to catch one of the terrorists that Merle brought here. It's Merle's own brother."

Dix was hauled out, his hands tied behind his back. He was shoved towards Merle and the brothers looked at each other. Dix had an eye that was going to darken into a black eye and a large cut on his cheek. The way he was holding himself I recognized from when he had broken ribs years ago.

"You motherfucker. You're so dead," I whispered.

"What should we do with them?"

"Kill'em!" sang up from the townspeople.

A blond woman broke free from a man holding onto her and she approached the bastard. I couldn't hear what they were saying but her body language spoke of closeness. If this was his wife or girlfriend, he was even more of a douche for having me taken back to his apartment. The crowd was still chanting.

"The crowd has spoken. You said your loyalties lie here so prove it. Brother vs. brother. Fight to the death. Prove your loyalties," the Governor said.

"Don't do this," the blond screamed.

Merle looked at Dix as the rope around his wrists was cut away. A powerful left hook from the older brother had my man sprawled on the ground. I took off my shirt, cocked the Python, and put two fingers into my mouth to let out a loud whistle. Naturally everyone stopped to see where the whistle came from and they got an eyeful of my breasts. I used that opportunity to take out two men with weapons before throwing myself down as the others smarted up and opened fire.

I crawled over to a different window and saw that a couple bricks were removed. I used that to spy on the crowd and aimed another shot. People from the crowd were running and I couldn't let the bullet fly in case someone else got in the way. I heard more powerful gunfire take out other people and then I saw Rick.

Pulling on my shirt, I looked out the window and saw the bastard just standing there. Dix was punching Martinez and grabbing back his crossbow. Merle too was attacking a man from his side. Standing fully up in the window again, I took my aim and squeezed the trigger. The bullet flew through the air and struck the intended target. I let out an uncharacteristic giggle before limping my way over to the stairs. I had one bullet left to get down to Dix and the others.

Someone was waiting for me at the bottom of the stairs but I recognized that body anywhere.

"Enjoy the show, Dix?"

"What the fuck, AJ? No one sees ya tits but me," he growled, pulling me into his arms.

"Get me out of here and you can see more."

He led me out of the warehouse and over to the others. Rick had thrown a smoke bomb to cover our escape.

"Merle, come on," Dix cried as we headed towards the wall.

Now wasn't the time to smack Dix upside the head so I moved further up to where Rick was. The woman was already there waiting for us. I handed the Python back to its owner and crawled up and over. Lowering myself to the other side hurt worse than when I gave birth to Travis without an epidural. Glenn signalled from where he was and I made my way over.

"Shit, Glenn. What the fuck happened?"

"Merle," he said through the blood coating his face, dripping down onto his shirt.

"He's tagged along but we'll deal with that when we're far away from here."

The other 4 joined us and they led us away from the town. At least Merle was smart enough not to have a weapon in his hands as he followed us. Dix had taken off his jacket and offered it to me but it didn't cover much more than my shirt so it didn't really matter.

"How much further? My leg feels like it's going to fall off," I asked, as I stumbled again.

They took notice at the amount of blood running down my thigh and Dix handed over his bow to Merle. Rick was quick to raise his gun on the older redneck and Glenn took the weapon away.

"No weapons and if you say one thing I don't like, I will leave your ass here."

Merle nodded and Dix picked me up. He was careful of where he held me as not to put pressure on the wound but I didn't care at that moment. I was back with Dix and I showed him my thanks with a kiss.

"Let's get back and we can all have a nice chat."

"I thought you promised me a show," he whispered.

"That you'll get if you do what I want."

"You're pussy whipped, Darlina," Merle chuckled.

"Rick, give me your gun back so I can shoot Merle in the balls like I shot that bastard back there."

Merle's hand went to his crotch and he barely whispered an apology. Rick gave me a look and we continued on to where they stashed the car. It was a tight fit but Dix, Glenn, and I shared the back seat of the SUV. The woman, Michonne as she introduced herself on the walk, took the passenger seat. Since Rick would be driving, Merle had to squeeze into the trunk. Dix tried wrapping another makeshift bandage around my leg but the bumpy roads were not helping.

"Leave it. I'll survive until we reach the prison."

I laid my head on Dix's shoulder and tried not to think about what happened that night or the fact that my lover's perverted brother was sitting behind me. I glanced over at Glenn and could see the tension in his body. I reached over and grabbed his hand. I squeezed it and tried to give him a peaceful smile. He barely returned it with a grimace.

We finally reached the prison and the gates were opened by Maggie and Carol. Rick drove through to the courtyard and parked. He immediately went around and opened the trunk. He didn't point his gun at Merle but held it down at his side.

"Inside. You are going to stay in a cell until we figure out what we're going to do with you."

Dix helped me out and carried me inside. There were new people in the prison but we didn't really pause as Carl unlocked the door to the cells. Dix took me inside and picked the same cell I was in when I first arrived. He then hollered for Hershel.

"AJ!"

A small bundle of blur ran into the cell and wrapped me in his arms. Dix was jumpy and nearly pulled the boy away but my arms held him firm.

"Hey, Max. I'm sorry for not coming back like I said I would."

"I thought I lost you like Pop and Mama. That bad man had a gun on you. Then a nice, pretty woman brought me here."

"I did whatever I could to get back to you and Dix. Now, I need you to go back to Maggie while her father looks at my leg."

"No. I don't want to leave you again," he cried.

I exchanged a look with Hershel and Dix before shushing the boy. I had him curl up beside me against the wall, allowing room for Hershel to look at my leg. As he unwrapped the bloody bandages, I covered Max's eyes and tried to keep from crying out. I grabbed the railing of the bed with my free hand and tightened my grip when the pain grew.

"I can't do anything for the possible damage to your muscle. I'll stitch up the wound and you'll have to keep it easy to let it heal. Until you're up, I can't say if you'll have a limp or not. I'm sorry."

"Don't be. You didn't cause the wound. Have you checked over Glenn?"

"I'll take a look after I'm finished with you. He doesn't have an open bleeding wound like you so you come first."

"But if he has broken ribs, they could puncture his lungs. He could…"

"Shush, girl. When he came in, he told me to take care of you first."

I kept quiet as Hershel stitched up the wound and bandaged it. He covered Max and I with a blanket before he left the cell. Dix took the chair he had been sitting in and looked down at us.

"Ya shouldn't have left. Ya wouldn't have been caught."

"No. Maggie might have and you don't know what could have happened to her."

"Maybe the same as ya. Michonne said she found ya tied to a bed. Did he…" he asked, trailing off at the end so he didn't have to come out and say it.

"He threatened it as with a couple others."

"Fuck, AJ. When I saw ya left a picture of Travis, I wanted to go after ya. Rick had taken off and no one knew where he was. Lil' Asskicker wouldn't stop crying unless I held her so I had to step up. Knew ya could look after yourself but if I had known…"

"No one knew. I could have easily gotten out of that town with Max and came back here and things could have been different. I could have ended up somewhere else and gotten attacked by walkers. We don't know what could happen so we can only go with the flow. The important thing is I'm back with you, we're safe, and if should that bastard survive having his cock and balls shot off, he'll think twice before coming after us."

Dix chuckled and leaned down to kiss me. I glanced over at Max and found him asleep.

"Now. I'm going to try and sleep. You should go talk to your brother and give him a good ass-whopping for punching you and for what he did to me. But before you go, answer me one thing."

"Sure. What is it?"

"You named the baby Asskicker? Seriously?"

He kissed my forehead and left the cell.


	12. Chapter 12

**Note: Enjoy! (p.s. I'm not good at writing an accent like Daryl's so there isn't much of that, plus it's a bit easier to read when it's not all redneck-y...)**

**Note2: So this is the ending but I plan to do another story, like an offshoot about one of the characters...when i have it finished, i'll let you all know if you want...Thanks for all the reviews and such...**

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Max and I slept curled up for several hours before the pain meds began wearing off and I woke with a start. I stared up at the bottom of the top bunk and tried to think the pain away but it was becoming worse. I gripped the edge of the bed and let out a small whimper. The rustling near the bed had me turning my head. Dix was sitting on the floor in the corner where the wall met the cell door, asleep.

"You stupid redneck. There is a top bunk," I called.

He jumped awake, immediately going for his crossbow which laid at his side. I chuckled but the movement caused Max to shift. He had thrown one of his legs over my good one and his foot had nudged my thigh. I sucked in a breath at the pain and slowly let it out.

"What do ya need?" Dix asked, getting up.

I motioned for him to come closer and when he was close enough, I grabbed the collar of his shirt and pulled him down. I kissed him and smiled up at him.

"I'm good."

"Bullshit, AJ. Ya in pain."

"Of course I am but I doubt we have all the painkillers in the world lying around."

"Maybe not that many but we have some. I won't let ya go in pain."

Dix left the cell before I could refuse him in search of painkillers. I could see the sun beginning to rise, casting a small glow through the outer window. After a moment of peace, a wailing baby cry echoed throughout the cell block. My heart ached for that sound. When I had last heard it, Lori was barely alive and then I had to kill her. My arm curled around Max a bit tighter but the boy didn't wake from the crying.

"Here ya go. Top of the line. Hershel will come by in a bit to see how ya doing."

"How's Asskicker?" I smirked.

"Hungry. Beth or Carol will feed her a bottle. Rick's on guard duty for another hour or so."

"He has stepped up for that baby, right? He barely looked at her when he kicked me out and you mentioned he disappeared."

"He's doing what he can."

I took the small pills that Dix handed me and swallowed it with the water he had. The redneck leaned back against the wall, crossing his arms across his chest. The bottom lifted a little bit and I could catch a small sliver of skin.

"If I could move and Max wasn't here, I'd run my tongue across your skin right there. I'd work your jeans off and…"

"But ya can't."

"I can still tell you what I want to do. Gives you a preview of what will happen when I'm told I can move. I don't have to be completely healed to be able to taste you."

Someone coughed and we both looked up to see Beth holding the baby. Her cheeks were scarlet and she couldn't meet our eyes.

"Sorry to interrupt. She won't take her bottle. Carol has tried too."

Dix reached over and plucked the baby out of her arms. He seemed like a natural holding her. Beth handed over the bottle and with a small rocking motion, he calmed the hiccupping baby down to offer the bottle's nipple. She latched on and the girl smiled. I did too but I could feel the tears dripping down from my eyes. He never had the chance to feed his own son like that. He never had the chance to bond with Travis.

I hadn't realized that I was crying full out until I had Max and Dix trying to calm me down. I couldn't form words around the blubbering and had to gesture with my hands. A nod had me realizing that Dix knew what I was trying to say. Max didn't but wrapped his arms around me and hugged me. It took until after the baby was burped that I could talk.

"Sorry."

"If I kicked you, I didn't mean to. I don't want you to hurt, AJ," Max whispered.

I stroked my fingers down his cheek and looked into his eyes. I shook my head.

"It wasn't that, sweetie. We had a son a couple years older than you but Dix never had the chance to see him. Travis got sick like your Mama."

"Did you have to lock him in a basement too?"

"Not in a basement but I had to leave him behind."

The boy was silent for a few moments before sitting up on the bed. He looked out at Dix and then back at me. He smiled and clapped his hands.

"I'm not Travis but I could be your son. I don't have a Mama anymore but I really liked having one. Mama used to let me sleep with her, fed me, gave me clothes, and kept me safe. You've done all that too so you could be my new Mama."

New tears were filling my eyes and I reached up for Max. I wrapped him in a hug and kissed his cheek.

"I will watch over you even if I wasn't your Mama, Max. Everyone here will."

He carefully squeezed me again before wiggling out of the bed.

"Sorry but I have to pee," he explained as he ran out of the cell.

The painkillers were kicking in and my mind was getting fuzzy. My eyes gazed up at Dix and the baby. Maybe if this life ever calmed down, we could have another one.

"You're a good daddy, Dix."

"Sleep, AJ. I'll try to keep Max busy."

The next time I awoke Hershel was seated beside me checking on my leg. He was rewrapping it and smiled when he saw me awake.

"It still looks good. No signs of infection. I think a few days in bed before we even let you attempt walking."

"How about sitting? Could I sit up?"

"Give it another day and then try but if it starts pulling on the stitches or hurts, it will be back to bed for you."

"Thanks, Hershel. How are you doing?"

"Getting around easier with these crutches. Everyone else is fine, AJ. Do not worry about us. You need to focus on yourself right now."

"I'll go crazy just lying here so my mind wonders about everyone. I bet Glenn is wishing to be alone with Merle so he can retaliate and Maggie is begging him to reconsider. Beth and Carol are probably busy with the baby and cooking. I have no clue as to how Michonne joined our band of misfits."

"All in due time. Rick did want to have a talk with you when you're more up to it."

"Send him in. Not like I can go line dancing right now."

The old man laughed and lifted himself up onto the crutches. He left my cell and a few minutes later, Rick replaced him bringing a tray of food. Whoever made it had kept it easy since I would be eating lying down.

"You are one crazy woman," he started.

"Too true but we all got out alive. Glenn and I will heal while I hope that bastard bled to death. If I keep threatening Merle like I did, he might be some use to us. I think it went quite well."

"You're stuck in bed recovering from a knife to the thigh. I don't call that quite well and Michonne mentioned how she found you."

"But that didn't happen so it's nothing to worry about. We're all alive."

Rick was quiet while I ate a few pieces of meat. I had no idea what kind of meat it was but it was something not from a can so that was a bonus. I took the time to really look at Rick and could see the tiredness settle into his eyes and the stress in his shoulders. He was the pseudo-leader of this group but it was beginning to get to him.

"I'm grateful that it wasn't Carl in your place when it came to Lori. I realize now that you were doing what was necessary, even she knew it was a possibility and planned for it. I should have been thankful that you helped bring my daughter into this world and kept the group safe but in my grief, I could only see you covered in Lori's blood."

"As long as you don't plan on kicking me out again, it's fine. I do have a question though. Why were you all pissy with me when I first showed up?"

He turned away briefly and stared at the wall.

"I saw you as a threat. Not because you had all those weapons and seemed to know how to use them but because you knew Daryl. Having him as part of our group has saved our asses a few times and I couldn't risk you convincing him to leave."

"That's kinda stupid. If you really didn't want Dix to leave, you should have invited me to stay. Keep me, keep him. But it would have been his choice and he has grown close to the group and it had been years since we saw each other last so I doubt he would have left. The saying is 'Bros before hos' so he might have tried to convince you to let me stay rather than having to pick."

Now that I knew why Rick had acted like he had, I felt connected to him in a way.

"So, I hear that Dix named the baby Asskicker. Please tell me as her father that you have chosen something more…um…real. An actual name," I said.

"Judith. Carl helped me with that. Maybe when you're up, I could bring her by."

"Of course. I'd love to see the little girl."

"Mama, she says I have to have a bath. The water is so cold," Max cried, running into the cell.

Carol was standing behind him with a small smile on her lips. I thought I saw a glimmer of sadness in her eyes but it was gone when I looked again.

"When I first got here, I showered in the rain. Now that was cold. I bet Carol wasn't expecting you to sit in cold water. Did you listen to her aside from her saying it was bath time?"

He shook his head and looked at the floor. I lifted his chin so he could look at me.

"Look at me please. Your Mama taught you to listen and ask questions. Turn to Carol and ask her about the bath."

"Will the bath be cold?" he asked, turning around to the woman.

"No. We heat the water over the fire first and it's more of a sponge bath. We use the warm water to wipe all the dirt off and then to clean off the soap. So it's not really even a bath," she replied.

"Doesn't that sound nice, Max? To get all the dirt off and be clean? We could even wash your hair so it wasn't so oily."

"Yes, Mama."

"Good. I can't get up to help but if Carol is OK with helping you, you could hurry back and have a nap with me."

He beamed me a smile and rushed over to Carol. He was almost bouncing on his toes.

"Will I get to put on clean clothes too? I don't want to get my dirty clothes close to Mama's leg. It might make her sick."

Carol took his little hand in hers and led him out, explaining that he could even pick what clothes he wanted to wear.

"You are a natural mother, AJ," Rick offered.

"No, I'm not but thank you for thinking so. I had to learn with Travis."

Rick left and I pondered what life in our prison would be like for the upcoming months. Glenn and I would heal from our injuries. We would kill any walker who got too close and maybe threaten Merle with physical harm if he stepped out of line. But most importantly, we would protect each other and our home. Because that's what this prison is now. It's our home full of family.


End file.
